Darah dan Doa ([daˈrah ˈdan doˈa]; Indonesian for Blood and Prayer, released internationally as The Long March) is a 1950 Indonesian war film directed and produced by Usmar Ismail, telling the story of the Siliwangi Division and its leader Captain Sudarto on a march to West Java.

Captain Sudarto leads his men – together with women and children – over more than 200 kilometres (120 mi), resting during the day and traveling in the morning and evening.

The division in dire straits, Sudarto offers to go to nearby Bandung on his own for the much-needed supplies, leaving his fellow officer Leo in charge.

After the Dutch recognise Indonesia's independence, Sudarto is released from prison, only to learn that his wife has left him and he is under investigation for poor leadership.

[2] Creative control for these works, all of which were produced for the Dutch-sponsored South Pacific Film Corporation (SPFC), was held by cameraman A.A. Denninghoff-Stelling; Ismail served more as a dialogue coach.

[3] When the Netherlands recognised Indonesia's independence following several months of conferences in 1949, Ismail and other SPFC staff discussed establishing their own studio, though steps were not taken to do so until the following year.

[a][5][6] Crew for the production consisted of cameraman Max Tera, a former SPFC employee, with makeup by Rancha', artistic design by Basuki Resobowo, G. R. W. Sinsu on music, and Sjawaludin and E. Sambas responsible for the sound effects.

[12] Ultimately Del Juzar, a University of Indonesia law student, was cast as Sudarto,[13] with other spots going to Ella Bergen, Faridah, Aedy Moward, Awaluddin Djamin, Rd Ismail, Suzana, Muradi, and Rosihan Anwar.

After each day of filming had concluded, Ismail sent the results back to PFN in Jakarta and obtained rush prints which he screened for the cast and crew.

[25] Ultimately the film required President Sukarno's permission to be re-released in September 1950, after he received a private screening at the Presidential Palace in mid-1950.

[15] Ultimately Darah dan Doa was a financial failure, with losses that were not recouped until after Ismail released his next film the following year.

[15] In a 1960 retrospective, Perfini attributed the film's failure to a conflict of what the people wanted and what was provided; the write-up stated that Ismail had not meant to portray the military as it should be, but as it was – as well as individuals within it.

[36] Darah dan Doa is often considered the first "national" Indonesian film, although the first movie produced in the area, L. Heuveldorp's Loetoeng Kasaroeng, had been released 24 years prior.

[k][37] Barker and fellow film scholar Charlotte Setijadi-Dunn, however, argue that films by ethnic Chinese producers – generally dismissed as profit oriented in mainstream studies – already contained an Indonesian identity, citing examples such as Njoo Cheong Seng's Kris Mataram (Keris of Mataram; 1940).

[14] Directed by Nawi Ismail, it starred Sandy Suwardi Hassan, Rahayu Effendi, Rina Hasyim, and Aedy Moward.

Mereka Kembali won a single award, Runner-Up for Best Actor (Arman Effendy), at the 1972 Indonesian Film Festival.

"[41] He further suggests that Darah dan Doa was more Europeanised and individualistic, with a focus of Sudarto, while Mereka Kembali emphasised the importance of the group and represented an "Indonesianization of the national cinema".

[42] The Indonesian video archive Sinematek Indonesia holds both 35 mm and VHS copies of Darah dan Doa.